A Search for the Truth
by AiSoraix3
Summary: Tori had a life before becoming "Victoria Amelia McClain". She had many friends and family in whom she loved and had many adventures with. There was only one problem...She couldn't remember any of it! (OC goes into OP fanfic- Rating may change) AcexOC
1. A Shitty Morning

**EDIT- Sorry I forgot to do this earlier ^^' My bad!**

**This is my first story I published and I can't wait to see what you all think. I've got school so I won't be updating as often as I want to, but don't worry! I will update!**

**Disclaimer: One Piece belongs to Oda-sensei!**

* * *

All Tori could do was stare.

And stare, and stare, and stare.

The paper in front of her tortured her as it stared at her and taunted her, making fun of her artist's block.

Especially since it was rare for Tori to have artist's block; but for some reason, it was becoming quite frequent.

It was like someone put a sponge inside her brain and soaked up all of her good ideas for drawing, from characters to backgrounds to weird doodles.

And honestly, she hated it. She hated it all.

She hated having artist's block, she hated her average life, and she hated what gave her the artist's block; the only thing she could think of for days.

The words he said cut right through her like a knife. She was hurt, scared, confused.

Her muse was forever gone from her eyes.

Tori shook her head wildly. _'I gotta get him out of my head. He's gone. We're done. There's no reason to be sad anymore.' _Sighing, she stared at the picture of the both of them at the park. It shocked her that that was only two months ago. They were so happy then. Everything was so perfect; she thought nothing could go wrong.

Oh how naive wrong she was.

_'We've been broken up for two weeks. So…' _She closed her eyes; pictures of the two of them flowed through her mind. _'Why does it still hurt?' _

**_BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!_**

Startled by the sudden noise, Tori stared at her clock, the alarm going off at 7:30.

_'Finally, Friday, the last day of school. Hopefully Elliot can help me get out of my funk.'_

Getting up Tori took a shower, got on a black tank top and a plaid pastel rainbow flannel shirt along with white shorts and black wedge-heeled flip-flops.

She walked into the living room of the two bedroom apartment while putting her long dull brown hair into ponytail, the smell of eggs and bacon wafting from the kitchen. Walking into the kitchen, she saw a plate of eggs, bacon, toast, and a glass of orange juice. Her blue eyes skimming over the note from Kristen, her "mother". Grabbing piece of bacon she silently read the note.

_"Your father and I had to leave early for work for an emergency meeting in Taiwan. We'll be gone for a couple of weeks. Have a good day!"_

_ -Mommy_

Although she didn't want to be rude, she couldn't help but feel like barfing at the "mommy" part. She hated the fact they not only treated her like she was five, but also the fact that they pretended that last week never happened. She knew she was adopted, they told her themselves! So why they acted like it never happened confused her.

_'Guess that's one more thing to add to the _'What I Hate' _list.'_

Checking the clock she realized it was 8:00. Cursing, she quickly grabbed her backpack, locked the door and headed out to school.

Arriving at school with minutes to spare, Tori parked her bike and headed inside, her best friend Elliot waiting for her next to her locker.

Elliot and Tori had been best friends since they were ten- as far as she can remember. She lost her memory in an accident when she was ten, and can't remember anything from when she was younger. That was how she got adopted.

Anyways, back to Elliot.

Elliot was the girl Tori always wanted to be. She was fun, wild, free, and didn't care about what other people would think, and punch them if they told her otherwise.

Tori, however, was shy, naïve, quiet, and always cared about what other people thought of her. It was hard for her to open up to anyone other than Elliot, including Kristen and Jack.

Elliot was also gorgeous. She had blonde, curly hair, the brightest and most beautiful green eyes she has ever seen, including an incredible body with the right curves and the right bust.

Tori was the polar opposite. As described earlier, she had long, straight, dull brown hair, and drab blue eyes. And her body- she was a freaking twig. Barely any curves and not even a size above an A-cup.

Not to mention Elliot had flawless tan skin, while Tori had pale skin with freckles on her face.

Looking around, Elliot spotted Tori in an instant, excitement sparkling in her eyes.

"'Sup Tor! How's your day going?"

"Well, my so called "parents" left town for two weeks leaving only a note, I was almost late for school, and I've got artist's block, so…" staring back into her now filled locker, she sighed.

"A pretty shitty day."

Elliot sighed. She couldn't believe the shitty luck her best friend was having. First dumped, then abandoned, then having writer's block for artists…She just couldn't believe she wasn't uber-depressed.

"Wow. No wonder you were late. You know juniors and seniors with great grades get the last day off, you know."

Tori sighed. "I know, I just didn't want to be some depressed weirdo who sits around a lot with a face like they were thinking of ways of how to kill themselves."

Elliot raised an eyebrow. "And where the hell did you get that from?"

"A line from a Naruto fanfiction." Elliot chuckled.

"Of course you did."

**_BRRIIINNGG!_**

"Well, better head to home base. See you at lunch." Tori waved to the receding Elliot. "And by the way, don't forget about the fair this afternoon!"

Tori rolled her eyes. "I know, I know. See ya!"


	2. To Remember a Friend

**Me: Hey People! I'm back with another chapter!** **And it's longer!**

**...**

**Not by much though.**

**Zoro: Tch, lazy ass.**

**Sanji/Me: SHUT UP MARIMO!**

***Sanji and Zoro start fighting as I cheer Sanji on***

**Ace: *sweatdrops* Well, since Sorai-chan is busy, I'll just do this myself. Everything from One Piece belongs Eiichiro Oda. Nothing belongs to her except for her characters.**

**Me: *Sniff*Sniff* Why do you have to be so mean Ace-sama? TT-TT**

* * *

**_BRRIIINNGG!_**

"And that concludes the lecture. Have a good summer, everyone!"

Faster than a bullet Elliot left her English class, put her things away, and waited for Tori at her locker. As she was waiting, she got out her favorite manga, One Piece. She knew it would take her awhile, considering Mrs. Menach, the art teacher, was one of her favorite teachers, and considering she excelled in art (more like she was a freakin' prodigy), she loved sharing it with her.

"Have a good summer, Mrs. Menach!"

"You too, Victoria."

Elliot looked away from the book to see Tori grinning like a fool.

"What's got you so excited, Ms. Happy-as-can-be?" Tori chuckled.

"Oh nothing, just getting a painting in a gallery, the usual." Elliot gasped.

"Ohmygosh really?" Tori nodded. Elliot squealed as her best friend laughed and hugged her in excitement. "Not that I don't love your art, 'cause I do, but how?"

"Mrs. Menach has a friend who owns a gallery downtown. She gave her one of my most recent works and she liked it."

Elliot gaped at her best friend. "I can't believe my best friend's gonna be a professional artist!"

"Well, not yet." Tori added. Quirking an eyebrow, Elliot stared at her in curiosity. Ignoring the look, Tori continued. "I just have to get them passed by critics. If they say they're good enough to be viewed by the public, then I'm in! And there's also the fact that I currently have artist's block."

"Don't worry! I know you'll do great! And besides, the artist's block is just a phase. Now come on, let's head to lunch. I'm so hungry I might eat more than Luffy!"

"Huh?"

"You know, Luffy?" Tori tilted her head. Elliot Sighed. "You know, Monkey D. Luffy, the protagonist of my favorite Manga, One Piece?"

"Oh! Right!" Elliot giggled.

"You're just as oblivious as he is!"

"Oi!" They laughed and headed towards to the lunch room.

* * *

A pirate ship was sailing in the dead of night. You'd think no one was awake, for there were no sounds of footsteps.

However, a young man with a straw hat sat on the head of the lamb figurehead, deep in thought. This was an unusual thing for him.

But he wasn't thinking about just anything, oh no. He was thinking about her; her smile, her laugh, her shyness, everything that he could remember.

Not one of his nakama knew about her, though. Not Zoro, not Nami, not Usopp, definitely not Sanji, not Vivi, and not their newest crewmember, Chopper. It wasn't like he didn't trust them, but it was just too soon.

It wasn't unusual for him to think about her. He always did. And he knew Ace definitely thought about her nearly 24/7. She was special to the both of them.

Maybe a bit more special to Ace, but she was still special to him, too.

He even remembered how talented she was at drawing. He still had the drawing that inspired his crew's flag somewhere in the boy's quarters.

"Oi," Startled, Monkey D. Luffy turned around to see his first mate, Zoro behind him. "What are you still doing up?" Luffy shrugged.

"Couldn't sleep." Zoro frowned. That wasn't like his captain at all to not be able to sleep. He knew there was reason to this, but he had no idea what it could be.

There was no way Luffy's stressed about kicking Crocodile's ass-he was excited about it. Besides, Luffy has never been known to stress about these things.

"Wanna talk about it?" Luffy shook his head.

"Nah,"

_'Not yet, at least.' _

Sighing, Zoro left Luffy there to let him think. Whatever was bothering him he knew Luffy could sort it out himself.

* * *

The Alabasta night was cool and refreshing for Fire-fist. It was quiet; almost peaceful, especially at the docks. It was almost rare to see a dock with no one around, even at this time of night.

He'd been in Alabasta waiting for his little brother for five days now; Luffy nowhere in sight.

_'I wonder if he got my message…' _Ace thought. He chuckled. _'He was probably too involved in snowball fights to remember anyways.'_

For a quick second he had a smirk, before it disappeared. He remembered what day was coming up.

_'It's been almost seven years since that day. I wonder if she's okay.'_

A sudden wind blew from the sea, as if to answer his question with a laugh. Ace shook his head.

_'What am I thinking? Of course she's okay! I mean, she survived living with Luffy, Sabo and I. She's tough. She can handle herself.'_

He relaxed for a few more minutes before remembering something important.

Ace searched around his pants pockets before he found it; the one thing that binded the two by fate besides a red string.

It was a ring; a PROMISE ring…

Their promise ring. Just like the name suggests, the ring held a promise between the two that had its twin. Of course it wasn't about marriage or anything like that.

**_A young girl with short brown hair, around six years old, put a small golden ring into the hand of a young ten year old Ace. "Here," she said. Confused, Ace quirked an eyebrow, making the young girl roll her eyes. "It's a copy of my ring. Now you have one, too, so no matter how far apart we are, we'll have these rings to remember each other by! So you better not lose it1" This made Ace more curious._**

**_"Alright, alright, I promise. But…" He stared at the ring. "How'd you get it?" The young girl let out a giggle, her blue eyes sparkling in the moonlight._**

**_"Let's just say… I got a little help." It was Ace's turn to roll his eyes as he gave her head a rough rub._**

**_"Thanks shorty." The young girl puffed her cheeks._**

**_"I'm not short!"_**

He couldn't help but smile at the memory.

She had given him that ring to him on his tenth birthday, around the same time he met Sabo and about five months before Luffy started living with them. And yet, he still had the ring. He didn't lose it or anything.

_'I held up my end of the promise, so you better hold up your end…Annie.'_

* * *

**Me: Alright! Chapter Two up! And just who the hell's Annie, Ace?**

**Ace: How should I know? She's your character!**

**Me: ^^' Right... Any who, here's a sneak peak of the next chapter! Please review! :)**

* * *

"Just shut up already!"

The sudden outburst made the entire lunch room quiet. All eyes were on Tori, who looked like she was about to blow a fuse.

She walked up to Melanie, hands and jaw clenched tight. For the first time she wasn't afraid, oh no.

She was pissed.


	3. Surprise, Surprise!

**Me: Hey! I'm back with another update!**

**Luffy: Finally! What took you so long?**

**Me:...Luffy, it's only been nearly 20 hours. That's not that long.**

**Luffy: Oh...**

**Me: Okay... Anyways, I do not own One Piece, it belongs to Oda-sensei. The only thing I own is my characters and pure awesomeness. :P**

* * *

The Lunch room was crowded with students as they sat down and ate their lunches while others waited to get their lunch in line; which was exactly what Tori was doing.

Tori was getting her lunch while Elliot was babbling on about the School Fair that afternoon.

Their high school, Willowsby (Will-ohs-bee) High, held a fair every year on the last day of school to celebrate the students. Usually it was like any other school fair with classrooms having different games (which were boring according to Elliot) and things like that; making it so they didn't usually go. But that year they had raised so much money on the annual fundraiser, that they were able to buy an entire area to hold their fair, including multiple rides like a Ferris wheel, multiple Rollercoasters and other rides.

So, instead of staying at home and drawing like she usually would, Tori was being forced to go to the Fair by Elliot.

While Elliot was babbling, Tori was deep in thought. She was thinking about everything that had happened over the last two weeks; especially the night her parents told her she was adopted (which they didn't have to do. She could remember that day clearly).

**_"Hun, can we talk to you for a second!" Her mother yelled from the living room._**

**_"Coming!" Tori walked into the living room, her parents sitting on the couch with worried looks on their faces. "What's wrong?" Her father sighed._**

**_"We need to talk about you-"_**

**_"Being adopted?" Her mother gasped._**

**_"How did you know?" Tori rolled her eyes._**

**_"I was ten, mom. I may have amnesia about before you guys found me, but I remember everything about that day. I mean, I wasn't two or three!" An awkward silence filled the room before Tori spoke up again._**

**_"Alright, now I have a question for you guys." Her father quirked an eyebrow._**

**_"And what would that be?" Tori sighed._**

**_"Do you guys have any idea about where I came from?" Their faces froze with fear. This immediately caught Tori's attention. "What?" Her father sighed once more._**

**_"We looked into it," he explained. "However, we couldn't find anything."_**

**_"What!" They looked away. They knew she was angry, and they couldn't help it. "No Birth Certificate? No Medical Records? No one looking for me?" The shook their heads, making Tori upset._**

**_"Then try harder! I love you guys but I need to know where I came from and who I REALLY am!"_**

**_"But honey-"_**

**_"DON'T honey me! I…" Tori looked away. "I want to be alone for a little while, so don't bother coming into my room."_**

She felt bad, but she couldn't help it! She was upset that there was a chance that there would be no way to find out who she really was, and not only that, she was worried about-

"Hey, Tori, you listening?"

Snapping out of her daze she realized that they were at their usual table, Elliot sitting across from her. "Yeah, sure," Elliot rolled her eyes

"Anyways, first we'll hit the _Twister_, then-"

"Well, well, well, look at what the slutty cat draggedin."

Tori and Elliot looked to the side to see the most popular in school, Melanie, with her cronies by her side. Elliot scowled while Tori kept a straight face, not wasting any of her emotions on the bitch.

"What do you want, Melanie?" Melanie cackled.

"Oh nothing. I just wanted to confirm the little rumor that's going around." She turned to Tori. "So Jason finally dumped you. He finally realized that dating a nameless nobody was bad for his rep. It was about time." Elliot fumed.

"Oi! It just so happens Tori is going to become the next Monet, isn't that right, Tori?" Tori sighed.

"Yeah, but-"

"Oh so the nobody is trying to be a somebody, hm?" Melanie sneered. "Let me tell you something, hun. You'll never become a great artist, no matter how hard you try."

"What the fuck do you know, Melanie?!" Elliot yelled. The two started bickering while Tori was as quiet as a mouse. She didn't dare say anything.

"Tori is a proud girl and an incredible artist!"

"Proud?! Of What?! The fact that she got dumped proves she has nothing to be proud of!"

"You know, I can arrange a face reconstruction if you want. It will only take a second!"

"Ha! You couldn't hit me even if you wanted to."

"You wanna bet?!" Elliot pulled back her arm and was about to punch Melanie before she was held back by someone.

It was Tori.

"Don't do it." Tori had a serious face, her bangs covering her eyes.

"What the fuck, Tori? You're just gonna let her insult you and get away with it?" Tori sighed.

"She's not worth it Elliot." Elliot looked at Tori with disbelief, before giving up and backing down. Melanie cackled.

"That's right, Ellie! Listen to little miss good girl! Let everyone see how weak and spineless you are." Tori got up to go, but not before Melanie stood in her way. "Now where are you going, Tor?"

"I'm leaving," Tori walked around Melanie. Melanie laughed.

"Leaving? You mean, just like your parents left you?" Tori stopped dead in her tracks and dropped the lunch tray. "I guess they had a right mind, I mean, any parent of yours must be to weak and poor to help you! Who knows? Maybe they were people who were never meant to exi-"

"Just shut up already!"

The sudden outburst made the entire lunch room quiet. All eyes were on Tori, who looked like she was about to blow a fuse.

She walked up to Melanie, hands and jaw clenched tight. For the first time she wasn't afraid, oh no.

She was pissed.

"I don't give a fuck if you belittle me, call me a slut, or say I shouldn't exist!" She yelled. "But if you ever put down anyone I love and care about despite the fact that I don't remember them, then you better run."

The glare she gave was frightening. No one had seen Tori this pissed. They all knew she was a shy girl who rarely showed her true emotions. But whatever Melanie said to light that flame of anger and hatred, everyone in that room made a note not to say anything like that to her.

"We were just about to leave anyways," Melanie stated, trying to hide the fear and surprise in her voice. "Come on girls, the nerd from biology still needs to do our homework." As the three left, everything was dead quiet before a few seconds before Tori started picking up the food she dropped.

When everything went back to normal, Elliot started helping Tori, surprised at her outburst. It was completely out of character.

"Where did that come from?" Tori shrugged.

"I-I don't know."

* * *

The rest of the day was a normal day. Of course, it including Tori getting stared at occasionally (which she had to admit was unnerving), but other than that, it was a normal day.

During French, her last class, she kept on thinking back to what happened during lunch. Her little outburst surprised everyone INCLUDING herself. And honestly, she had no idea where it came from; and the only conclusion she could come up with was that it had to do with something of her past; her forgotten past.

And truthfully, it scared her.

Did someone she love or a friend say that they didn't deserve to exist?

Did they question their existence?

The thought of that made her pale. So pale, that her French teacher noticed.

"Ms. McClain, you don't look so well. Go to the nurse's office and lay down for a bit, okay?" Tori gaped at Mr. Bernard, her French teacher.

"O-okay! Thank you!" She took the note and quickly left and walked in to the sick bay, gave the note to the nurse and immediately lay down on the first bed she saw.

_'God, I feel like I'm gonna puke…'_ She thought. She tried to get up to go to the bathroom, before collapsing.

_'Ungh…' _The nurses crowded around her saying things, but to Tori it was all just incoherent blabbering as her mind faded to darkness.

* * *

**_A seven year old girl with short brown hair and blue eyes stood by the window of a tree house deep in thought. She just heard her best friend talk to blondie about wondering if he deserved to exist or not right after they found out that he was the son of the deceased Pirate King. And it made her mad._**

**_Not only she was mad that he thought that, it made her mad that he didn't talk about it with her first. She was his friend before blondie ever was. So why him and not her? Did he not trust her?_**

**'This is ridiculous,' ****_she thought. _****'Why should I care about what he does or doesn't tell me?' ****_Sighing, she stared into the night sky as stars sprinkled the sky. _****'They look so beautiful…'**

**_"Oi," She turned around to see a young, black-haired boy around ten years old with freckles on his face, along with a frown. "You should be asleep." She shrugged and turned back around._**

**_"Insomnia," She heard the boy sigh as he stood next to her. "I heard you." He rolled his eyes._**

**_"I know. You're not the quietest person in the world, y'know." It was her turn to roll her eyes. Awkwardness filled the room before the young girl spoke up with a whisper._**

**_"Why?" The young boy quirked an eyebrow._**

**_"Why what?"_**

**_"Why did you talk to Sabo about this and not me?!" She yelled. She was now turned towards the young boy, tears stinging her eyes. "You're my best friend! My brother! I've known you longer than Sabo and Luffy combined! I care about you more than anything in the world and trust you with my life, and you can't trust me with this! I mean, it's not like I'm saying you shouldn't exist, but-" He covered her mouth._**

**_"I know." A small smile played across his lips as he quickly wiped the tears away from her eyes. "The whole reason I didn't tell you is because I didn't want you to get upset." She liked his hand, an audible 'GAH!' coming out of his mouth._**

**_"But I got upset BECAUSE you didn't tell me. I understand why, but…" she looked down at her feet. "Can I at least tell you what I feel about it?" _**

**_"But…" Realizing she was not backing down as she gave him the puppy-dog face (which he had to admit it worked like a charm- she was too dang cute!) he gave in. "Fine!"_**

**_"I think you're an idiot." The young boy was shocked._**

**_"WHAT?!"_**

**_"I think you're an idiot because I believe that it doesn't matter whether you're meant to exist or not, what matters that you're here and that you DO exist!"_**

**_Stunned, the young boy stood there his mouth hanging open. Getting over it, he shook his head and chuckled as he rubbed her head._**

**_"Thanks, shorty!" The young girl fumed._**

**_"How many times do I have to tell you; I'm NOT SHORT!"_**

* * *

_'Gah… My head hurts like hell…' _Tori had awoken from her "slumber" in her bed. _'Wait…My bed…? The fuck…?'_

"Good, you're awake. You feeling better," a voice said. Her eyes widen. She knew who this voice belonged to. She couldn't forget it, considering it belonged to HIM.

"Jason…"

* * *

**Me: Awesome, huh? Just proves I'm awesome personified! :D**

**Zoro: No it doesn't.**

**Me: TT-TT- That hurt, Zoro-kun...**

**ANYWAYS! What's going on? What was that weird vision Tori just had? And why the fuck is that bastard of an ex in her apartment? Looks like you're gonna have to wait next time! Anyways, here's a sneak peak! Enjoy ;)**

* * *

She sat on her bed, thinking about what the old fortune teller had said.

If this was her only chance to find where she comes from and where she belongs, should she go?

She stared at the ring she had since she could remember. It was the only thing that linked her to her past. She nearly forgot about it. At that very moment as she stared at the only thing she had from her past, she decided.

She would meet the old woman at the docks.

And she would search for the truth.


	4. AUTHOR'S NOTE VERY IMPORTANT

**A/N: I'm sooo sorry about the delayed update! My mom turned off my computer and I lost most of the fourth chapter. And honestly...**

**I DON'T REMEMBER MOST OF IT! TT-TT**

**Plus, I am behind on a bit of school work (DAMN YOU ADVANCED CLASSES!), so there's a chance that I'll be putting out the first chapter of a different story that I'll be starting, and the putting the on hiatus for a bit. Again I'm really sorry and I promise I'll take it off of hiatus as soon as I can and put up the fourth chapter, and hopefully the second chapter of my new story, which, by the way, is called "Crazy Shit Happens at Midnight".**

**Yep.**

**Shit will go down. :P**

**Anyways I hope you guys understand! And once again, I'm really sorry!**

**See you later,**

**-Sorai...**


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